An information processing apparatus such as a personal computer creates a folder (also called a directory) and stores files in the folder in order to classify and arrange files in a storage medium (storage device) such as a hard disk or flexible disk. In displaying a folder, the icon of a selected folder is changed, or the font of the folder name of the selected folder or the background color of the text is changed to represent that the folder is selected when the user selects the folder icon.
The folder has a function of further creating a folder (subfolder or subdirectory) in the folder and classifying files by the hierarchy structure. FIG. 36 shows an example of a folder viewer window 14000 corresponding to folders of the hierarchy structure. In FIG. 36, folders of names “DDD”, “CCC”, “BBB”, and “AAA” exist at the same layer position. A mark “+” added before a folder name represents that the folder contains another folder. In FIG. 36, folders “CCC” and “DDD” correspond to such a folder. When these folders are designated with a pointing device, the hierarchy structures of folders in them are recursively displayed.
There is known a technique of counting the reference count of a document file and changing the color of each file icon (picture character) in accordance with the counting result in listing and displaying document files, as shown in FIG. 37, in a document search system using a computer (e.g., Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-162010).
In general, the number of files in a folder cannot be known until the folder is opened. In order to grasp the number of files stored in a folder without opening the folder icon, there is known a technique of reflecting the number of files contained in a folder in an internal figure 14002a of a folder icon 14002, as shown in FIG. 38 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-95740).
According to another technique, access information is stored as shown in FIG. 39A upon access to a folder and a file icon stored in the folder. In displaying a list, the color and size of the folder icon are changed on the basis of the access information, as shown in FIG. 39B (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-215286).
There is also known an application which selects one or more data files to be printed from a folder and prints them at once.
This application creates several logical folders having the hierarchy structure in a storage device such as a hard disk or memory card, and stores image data files in the folders. For example, an image selection window as illustrated in FIG. 30 is displayed on a display device which provides a user interface. The hierarchy structure of the folders is displayed in a folder tree window 20001, and image files in folders selected from the folder tree window 20001 are listed and displayed in a thumbnail display window 20002. Each thumbnail (reduced image) is displayed together with the print count of a corresponding image, a “+” button to increment the print count, and a “−” button to decrement the print count. The print count of each image can be set by an easy user operation. The image selection window also comprises an “all” button to set the print counts of all images in a selected folder to 1, a “clear” button to reset them to 0, and a “zoom” button to enlarge and display an image selected by the user from the thumbnail display window 20002.
In such a printing control apparatus, images to be printed and their print counts are set in the image selection window, and the paper and layout used for printing are set in another window. Then, the images are printed by the printing apparatus (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-231323).
As described above, an application program which performs batch processing has a function capable of selecting a folder from the folder tree view, previewing images in the selected folder as thumbnails, and selecting an image from the previewed images.
As the method of selecting an image in a storage device, another image selection window as shown in FIG. 31 is also proposed. This image selection window visualizes the hierarchy structure of folders together with thumbnails contained in the folders. In the example of FIG. 31, a thumbnail display window 21001 displays the contents of a folder “Pictures”. The folder “Pictures” directly contains three image files 21002, and also contains three folders “AAA”, “BBB”, and “CCC”, each of which also stores image files. The folder “CCC” further contains a folder “CCC2” which stores image files. At the thumbnail display portion 21001, image files are displayed as thumbnails. At this time, for easy understanding of the hierarchical relationship between folders, the thumbnails of images stored in an upper folder are displayed larger, and those of images stored in a lower folder are displayed smaller (e.g., Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-263255).
As another print image selection method, the thumbnails of image files contained in a folder selected at a folder tree display portion 22001 are listed and displayed at a thumbnail display portion 22002, as shown in FIG. 32. A thumbnail is selected (a check mark is added in FIG. 32), and an “add” button 22003 is clicked. Then, an image corresponding to the selected thumbnail is registered in a “selected file list” 22004. According to this method, the print count of each image is set in a window different from the image selection window in FIG. 32.
As another output file selection method, the contents of a folder selected by the user from a folder structure display field 23001 are displayed in a folder content display field 23002, as shown in FIG. 33. One or more folders or files selected by the user from those in the folder content display field 23002 are processed. In the folder content display field 23002, both files and folders can be designated. At this time, when a folder in the folder content display field 23002 is selected, all files contained in the folder are processed (e.g., Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-209073).
However, the prior art of FIG. 30 does not consider management of the print count set for an image file in a previously selected folder when the selected folder is changed in the folder tree window 20001. In order to print images distributed in a plurality of folders, the user must repetitively perform for each folder an operation of selecting and printing images. To make images distributed in a plurality of folders fall within one paper sheet in printing with a layout of images on one paper sheet, the target images must be temporarily copied to one folder before execution of printing control software.
Even if images can be selected from a plurality of folders and printed at once, the following problems still remain unsolved.
An application having a function of selecting images from a plurality of folders and printing the selected images at once is expected to have a preview function of previewing which images are selected when images are selected from a plurality of folders.
However, even if selected images can be confirmed, it is difficult to confirm which folder stores each image.
These days, digital cameras have prevailed, and a folder having the name of a date or event is inevitably created to store an image file in the folder. As the chance to take a picture increases, the number of folders increases, which makes it more difficult to search for a folder which contains a selected image.
Some applications have a function of displaying a character string which forms the path of the folder of a selected image and allowing the user to know from which folder an image has been selected. However, it is difficult to intuitively know a selected image file from the character string of the path of a folder.
According to the prior art in FIG. 31, image files in a plurality of folders are simultaneously displayed and can be selected by the user, so an image file to be printed can be selected from a plurality of folders. However, if an image file contained in a folder of a lower layer is selected, the thumbnail of the image file is displayed small, and the user hardly identifies or selects the image file. If a plurality of folders at positions distant from each other in the folder hierarchy, e.g., image files in folders contained in different folders are selected, the folders are displayed at distant positions, and it becomes difficult to find them out by the user.
According to the prior art in FIG. 32, images are registered while switching and selecting a plurality of folders at the folder tree display portion 22001. Thus, images can be collected from a plurality of folders without displaying small the thumbnails of image files contained in a folder of a lower layer. However, registration of an image file to the “selected file list” and designation of the print count of the image file are performed at different portions, making the operation cumbersome. Since a folder from which an image file is registered cannot be known later, the user must search for the folder in referring to and additionally registering another image file stored in the same folder as that of the previously registered image. This problem is serious because digital cameras are popular recently, sensed image files are stored in folders having the names of dates, events, or the like, and the number of folders increases.
According to the prior art in FIG. 33, a plurality of folders contained in the folder content display field 23002 can be selected to process files contained in the folders at once. However, all files contained in a plurality of folders are processed, and it is impossible to arbitrarily select files from the folders and process the selected files. No files to be processed can be selected from a plurality of folders at positions distant from each other in the folder hierarchy.